1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to assemblies and apparatus for handling reels of wire, cable and the like, so as to facilitate unrolling [e.g. uncoiling], for use in manufacturing operations.
2. Description of the Related Art
Assemblies used in manufacturing operations for unrolling wire or strip material coiled on reels have been known and widely used for many years. An illustrative form of one such prior art device is disclosed in U. S. Pat. No. 4,923,138 issued to the present inventor. Such prior art devices often require the reels to placed on their side on a turntable for horizontal uncoiling. Positioning reels in this manner is difficult and can be hazardous to workers as well, due to the extremely high weight [a few hundred pounds, for example, and often much more] of such reels.
Other unreeling devices hold the reel in a vertical position for unreeling about a horizontal axis. When the horizontal axis approach has been used in the past, it generally required lifting the reel above the floor and mounting it on a horizontal spindle which further increases the effort and potential hazards involved. To alleviate some of the effort of lifting and mounting on a central-axis spindle, some prior art devices supported the reel by lifting the reel slightly above the floor and then positioning rollers, mounted a fixed distance apart on a common chassis, under opposite sides of the outer periphery of the reel, so that the rollers both supported the reel and allowed it to rotate. The difficulties inherent in this approach to lifting and supporting a reel include the ongoing difficulty of lifting the reel into position and the mechanical limitations of positioning rollers, mounted a fixed distance from each other, beneath the reel.